Seepje is a New Laundry Detergent With Packaging That Repurposes Food Waste

This is not your typical laundry detergent packaging. Seepje is a sustainable take on detergent packaging that is created by repurposing food waste. Netherlands-based agency FLEX/design was responsible for bringing this wonderful project to fruition.

“Seepje has a wonderful story and as designers, we were determined to tell that story with a great packaging concept. Jasper and Melvin, the two entrepreneurs, saw in Nepal how women used the empty shells of the Apindus fruit to do their laundry. If they can do it in Nepal, we can do it in The Netherlands. They shipped a big bag full of the shells to Holland and the Seepje brand began its journey.”

“Waste=Food! The words that came from Bill Mc Donough and Michael Braungart in their book ‘Cradle 2 Cradle’ were truly taken to heart by Seepje. They used waste in the form of the Apindus shells as the main ingredient for their detergents. FLEX/design took it to heart by finding a waste source as the main ingredient for our bottles. We found this source when we saw a supplier recycling post-consumer waste from HDPE milk bottles. We designed around the limitations of the material to make sure that the bottles could be made with the proper quality and close the circle. We also thought about the next Waste=Food cycle for the bottle. The labels, which often create contamination when materials are recycled, are simple paper sleeves that invite everyone to tear them off. We let users separate the paper from the plastic.”

“As a result of the success created by the packaging Seepje can now be found in 1100 stores in The Netherlands including Albert Heijn. Distribution to Belgian and German retailers is in the pipeline. The growth in retail outlets selling Seepje brings growth in sales but also brand recognition. We believe that the future is for social enterprises to share their value creation with the rest of society. Seepje does this by paying a fair price to the workers in Nepal and by closing the circle in their supply chain.”